Domain Research Step 3: Competitive Landscape

MANDATORY EXECUTION RULES (READ FIRST):

• 🛑 NEVER generate content without web search verification

• 📖 CRITICAL: ALWAYS read the complete step file before taking any action - partial understanding leads to incomplete decisions

• 🔄 CRITICAL: When loading next step with 'C', ensure the entire file is read and understood before proceeding

• ✅ Search the web to verify and supplement your knowledge with current facts

• 📋 YOU ARE A COMPETITIVE ANALYST, not content generator

• 💬 FOCUS on key players, market share, and competitive dynamics

• 🔍 WEB SEARCH REQUIRED - verify current facts against live sources

• 📝 WRITE CONTENT IMMEDIATELY TO DOCUMENT

• ✅ YOU MUST ALWAYS SPEAK OUTPUT In your Agent communication style with the config {communication_language}

EXECUTION PROTOCOLS:

• 🎯 Show web search analysis before presenting findings
• ⚠️ Present [C] continue option after competitive analysis content generation
• 📝 WRITE COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS TO DOCUMENT IMMEDIATELY
• 💾 ONLY proceed when user chooses C (Continue)
• 📖 Update frontmatter stepsCompleted: [1, 2, 3] before loading next step
• 🚫 FORBIDDEN to load next step until C is selected

CONTEXT BOUNDARIES:

• Current document and frontmatter from previous steps are available
• Research topic = "{{research_topic}}" - established from initial discussion
• Research goals = "{{research_goals}}" - established from initial discussion
• Focus on key players, market share, and competitive dynamics
• Web search capabilities with source verification are enabled

YOUR TASK:

Conduct competitive landscape analysis focusing on key players, market share, and competitive dynamics. Search the web to verify and supplement current facts.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE ANALYSIS SEQUENCE:

1. Begin Competitive Landscape Analysis

UTILIZE SUBPROCESSES AND SUBAGENTS: Use research subagents, subprocesses or parallel processing if available to thoroughly analyze different competitive areas simultaneously and thoroughly.

Start with competitive research approach: "Now I'll conduct competitive landscape analysis for {{research_topic}} to understand the competitive ecosystem.

Competitive Landscape Focus:

• Key players and market leaders
• Market share and competitive positioning
• Competitive strategies and differentiation
• Business models and value propositions
• Entry barriers and competitive dynamics

Let me search for current competitive insights."

2. Parallel Competitive Research Execution

Execute multiple web searches simultaneously:

Search the web: "{{research_topic}} key players market leaders" Search the web: "{{research_topic}} market share competitive landscape" Search the web: "{{research_topic}} competitive strategies differentiation" Search the web: "{{research_topic}} entry barriers competitive dynamics"

Analysis approach:

• Look for recent competitive intelligence reports and market analyses
• Search for company websites, annual reports, and investor presentations
• Research market share data and competitive positioning
• Analyze competitive strategies and differentiation approaches
• Study entry barriers and competitive dynamics

3. Analyze and Aggregate Results

Collect and analyze findings from all parallel searches:

"After executing comprehensive parallel web searches, let me analyze and aggregate competitive findings:

Research Coverage:

• Key players and market leaders analysis
• Market share and competitive positioning assessment
• Competitive strategies and differentiation mapping
• Entry barriers and competitive dynamics evaluation

Cross-Competitive Analysis: [Identify patterns connecting players, strategies, and market dynamics]

Quality Assessment: [Overall confidence levels and research gaps identified]"

4. Generate Competitive Landscape Content

WRITE IMMEDIATELY TO DOCUMENT

Prepare competitive landscape analysis with web search citations:

Content Structure:

When saving to document, append these Level 2 and Level 3 sections:

## Competitive Landscape

### Key Players and Market Leaders

[Key players analysis with source citations]
_Market Leaders: [Dominant players and their market positions]_
_Major Competitors: [Significant competitors and their specialties]_
_Emerging Players: [New entrants and innovative companies]_
_Global vs Regional: [Geographic distribution of key players]_
_Source: [URL]_

### Market Share and Competitive Positioning

[Market share analysis with source citations]
_Market Share Distribution: [Current market share breakdown]_
_Competitive Positioning: [How players position themselves in the market]_
_Value Proposition Mapping: [Different value propositions across players]_
_Customer Segments Served: [Different customer bases by competitor]_
_Source: [URL]_

### Competitive Strategies and Differentiation

[Competitive strategies analysis with source citations]
_Cost Leadership Strategies: [Players competing on price and efficiency]_
_Differentiation Strategies: [Players competing on unique value]_
_Focus/Niche Strategies: [Players targeting specific segments]_
_Innovation Approaches: [How different players innovate]_
_Source: [URL]_

### Business Models and Value Propositions

[Business models analysis with source citations]
_Primary Business Models: [How competitors make money]_
_Revenue Streams: [Different approaches to monetization]_
_Value Chain Integration: [Vertical integration vs partnership models]_
_Customer Relationship Models: [How competitors build customer loyalty]_
_Source: [URL]_

### Competitive Dynamics and Entry Barriers

[Competitive dynamics analysis with source citations]
_Barriers to Entry: [Obstacles facing new market entrants]_
_Competitive Intensity: [Level of rivalry and competitive pressure]_
_Market Consolidation Trends: [M&A activity and market concentration]_
_Switching Costs: [Costs for customers to switch between providers]_
_Source: [URL]_

### Ecosystem and Partnership Analysis

[Ecosystem analysis with source citations]
_Supplier Relationships: [Key supplier partnerships and dependencies]_
_Distribution Channels: [How competitors reach customers]_
_Technology Partnerships: [Strategic technology alliances]_
_Ecosystem Control: [Who controls key parts of the value chain]_
_Source: [URL]_

5. Present Analysis and Continue Option

Show analysis and present continue option:

"I've completed competitive landscape analysis for {{research_topic}}.

Key Competitive Findings:

• Key players and market leaders thoroughly identified
• Market share and competitive positioning clearly mapped
• Competitive strategies and differentiation analyzed
• Business models and value propositions documented
• Competitive dynamics and entry barriers evaluated

Ready to proceed to regulatory focus analysis? [C] Continue - Save this to document and proceed to regulatory focus

6. Handle Continue Selection

If 'C' (Continue):

• CONTENT ALREADY WRITTEN TO DOCUMENT
• Update frontmatter: stepsCompleted: [1, 2, 3]
• Load: ./step-04-regulatory-focus.md

APPEND TO DOCUMENT:

Content is already written to document when generated in step 4. No additional append needed.

SUCCESS METRICS:

✅ Key players and market leaders thoroughly identified ✅ Market share and competitive positioning clearly mapped ✅ Competitive strategies and differentiation analyzed ✅ Business models and value propositions documented ✅ Competitive dynamics and entry barriers evaluated ✅ Content written immediately to document ✅ [C] continue option presented and handled correctly ✅ Proper routing to next step (regulatory focus) ✅ Research goals alignment maintained

FAILURE MODES:

❌ Relying on training data instead of web search for current facts ❌ Missing critical key players or market leaders ❌ Incomplete market share or positioning analysis ❌ Not identifying competitive strategies ❌ Not writing content immediately to document ❌ Not presenting [C] continue option after content generation ❌ Not routing to regulatory focus step

❌ CRITICAL: Reading only partial step file - leads to incomplete understanding and poor decisions ❌ CRITICAL: Proceeding with 'C' without fully reading and understanding the next step file ❌ CRITICAL: Making decisions without complete understanding of step requirements and protocols

COMPETITIVE RESEARCH PROTOCOLS:

• Research competitive intelligence reports and market analyses
• Use company websites, annual reports, and investor presentations
• Analyze market share data and competitive positioning
• Study competitive strategies and differentiation approaches
• Search the web to verify facts
• Present conflicting information when sources disagree
• Apply confidence levels appropriately

COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS STANDARDS:

• Always cite URLs for web search results
• Use authoritative competitive intelligence sources
• Note data currency and potential limitations
• Present multiple perspectives when sources conflict
• Apply confidence levels to uncertain data
• Focus on actionable competitive insights

NEXT STEP:

After user selects 'C', load ./step-04-regulatory-focus.md to analyze regulatory requirements, compliance frameworks, and legal considerations for {{research_topic}}.

Remember: Always write research content to document immediately and search the web to verify facts!